Past and Present
by Hidge
Summary: Oneshot set after 4x14 - "Cold Comfort". Garcia brings up the interesting topic of past lives and forces the BAU to consider unique possibilities. Please R&R!


**A/N: So this is a quirky, little oneshot set shortly after "Cold Comfort". The idea came to me after watching _Pearl Harbor._ I love history, it is my favourite subject so I really enjoyed writing this. And I believe that I am as historically accurate as the character manipulation allows but correct me if I am wrong. Thanks to my beta for being so awesome! :) Enjoy...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.**

"So you don't believe in it?" Garcia asked Prentiss in disbelief.

"No," the brunette scoffed. "Why would you believe in past lives?"

"I dunno," Garcia answered. "It gives us like some kind of spiritual history, don't cha think?" She smiled at the look of bewilderment on her friend's face. "Like you, for example…definitely an Egyptian princess or something."

Prentiss laughed loudly, "Yeah, right."

"What's so funny?" Morgan asked curiously as he joined Garcia and Prentiss in the kitchen area of the bullpen.

"Garcia thinks that I was an Egyptian princess in a past life," she replied in a sarcastic tone.

Morgan smiled brightly. "Oh yeah."

Garcia rolled her eyes. "Don't look at me like I'm crazy!"

"I'm not," Morgan chuckled. "I'm sure that Reid has some statistic or fact about…" He stopped when the genius in question walked towards them with his coffee mug in hand.

"Has some statistic or fact about what?" He inquired as he took hold of the coffee pot.

"Past lives," Garcia answered him excitedly.

"Actually," Reid began in a matter-of-fact voice but Prentiss cut him off quickly.

"No! Don't start!"

"Wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, Em?" Morgan asked jokingly.

She forced a smile. "The other day we did my horoscope, isn't that enough for one week?"

Garcia laughed, "Come on, Em, indulge me! Look at what we do everyday. Wouldn't it make sense if in a past life we were…I dunno…in World War II or something?"

"World War II involved the mobilization of over one hundred million military personnel," Reid chimed in.

Garcia smiled brightly, "See, I can picture the 1940's versions of us right now."

Morgan decided to play along. "Who are we?"

"Well, all of us here," she smiled, "and Jayge, Hotch, and Rossi, of course."

"And what kind of people are we?" Prentiss gave a small sigh before she sat down at the table, across from Garcia, and joined their fantasy game.

"Well Ms. Prentiss," Garcia grinned, "you are the daughter of some high ranking official in Washington who is trying to persuade President Roosevelt to join the war. You're a little rebellious but you have a soft heart and you've recently joined the war effort." She turned her gaze from Prentiss to Morgan. "Derek likes to play the hero, he likes the danger, he likes the adrenaline, and he is a flyboy."

Morgan laughed, "Air Force."

"Dr. Reid is young and brilliant and is simply trying to find a way to use his astounding abilities to help his country and its people. He works in intelligence with legendary David Rossi. JJ is kind, caring, and good with people; she is a dedicated Navy nurse. Hotch is a Captain in the Army, of course," she added with a smile. "He's a born leader, disciplined, and maybe a little too stiff, needs to let go more."

"And what about you?" Reid asked enthusiastically.

"Me? Well I'm the entertainment, a little glimpse of sunshine in your gloomy lives," she chuckled. "I'm the regular singer at a classy nightclub frequented by our bravest." She smiled proudly after completing her assessment. Her expression turned smug as she looked at the awed faces of her friends and coworkers. It was nice to show profilers a thing or two now and then.

While she waited for one of them to say something, her mind began to wander.

_Washington, D.C., 1940……_

"…_Axis victories continue in Europe. With France defeated, it is only a matter of time before Hitler sets his sights on Great Britain and the commonwealth…"_

_The bartender angrily turned off the radio. "Are we just going to stand by and watch Europe burn to ground?" He asked no one in particular as he turned towards the young African-American male sitting at the bar. "What can I get you, son?" He inquired after quickly shaking off his displeasure. The young man was a soldier; he was wearing his formal uniform. Then again, the only customers that he ever got were military personnel._

"_Something strong," he replied with a small smile._

"_You got it. What's your name and rank, son?" He asked as he poured his drink._

"_Lieutenant Derek Morgan, Air Force," he answered automatically._

"_Well Lieutenant, the drink is on the house," he stated respectfully as he placed the glass in front of the soldier._

_Morgan smiled politely as he raised his glass in a show of thanks. He turned around on his stool so that he faced the stage. The full band was in their places so the songstress would be taking the stage shortly. He grinned as he spotted a nurse that he had recently met while completing his mandatory physical examinations. She was sitting at a table with four other young women. He waved her over and laughed as she rolled her eyes before walking towards him._

"_Good evening Miss Jareau," he greeted her charmingly._

"_Good evening Lieutenant," she smiled._

"_You're here with your friends?" He asked as he gestured towards her table._

_She nodded. "Yes, and you're not," she laughed._

"_I'm sorry," he chuckled. "My fellow pilots had their own nurses to meet, but I have other friends coming."_

"_Well, wave me over again when they get here," she stated before she twirled around and returned to her table._

_He laughed to himself; if the war didn't kill him then nurses would. Just as he was about to order another drink, he saw one of the friends that he had been waiting for approach him. Morgan hopped off of the barstool, straightened his back, and saluted his superior. Captain Aaron Hotchner may have been his friend, but he still outranked him. They firmly shook hands before they both sat at the bar._

"_So Hotch," Morgan began as he used the nickname that only a handful of people were able to get away with, "you came out tonight?"_

_Hotch nodded. "I'm sick of my superiors telling me that I should enjoy myself before things get more serious. They all have a feeling that we're going to be at war very soon," he replied in his faint Virginian accent._

"_Really?" Morgan asked curiously._

_Hotch nodded again. "We'll find out more when Dave arrives. I'll have a Scotch please," he added as the bartender approached._

_As Hotch placed his order, David Rossi walked in through the doors of the building with the young, but brilliant, Dr. Spencer Reid trailing behind him. Rossi was a legend, an honoured soldier who had served in the First World War and a friend of the President. He carried himself with confidence; some would even say that he was arrogant. Dr. Reid was a greenhorn who barely filled out his uniform, but he was incredibly gifted. Both of them worked in intelligence and it was extremely valuable to have friends in that line of work, especially when you weren't privileged to as much information as Generals. Despite their rankings as Captain and Lieutenant, there were still many mysteries._

"_Dave," Hotch said pleasantly as he shook the older man's hand. "And Dr. Reid." _

_The young man waved awkwardly, "Hello."_

"_Let's sit at a table," Rossi suggested._

_The four men sat down at a nearby table and Rossi was quickly brought his usual by a waiter. "So what are they saying?" Hotch asked in a whisper._

"_We believe that the British have cracked the German code," Rossi answered before taking a sip of his beverage. "And it is rumoured that the President wants to move the Pacific fleet to Pearl Harbour."_

"_Why?" Morgan asked in confusion._

"_Well," Dr. Reid began as he pushed his glasses a little farther up his nose. "My best guess would be to send a message to Japan."_

_Rossi watched as a young, blonde woman took the stage. "Enough of this talk, let's enjoy the night."_

_Everyone went quiet as she began to sing. Her voice was unique, full of personality, and it put a smile on Morgan's face. While Morgan concentrated on the stage, Rossi noticed that Hotch and Reid were both looking at the table directly across the room from theirs, a table full of nurses. Reid was incredibly uncomfortable around women so it was no surprise that he was glancing at them from a distance, with a slight blush on his face. But since the war broke out in Europe, Rossi hadn't seen Hotch give a woman a second look. He was incredibly focused on his work and duties. It was a coincidence that he happened to recognize the woman that Hotch seemed to be interested in._

"_Hey, Dave," Hotch began slowly, "isn't that…"_

_Hotch stopped talking and Rossi picked up where he left off. "Prentiss' daughter, yes, and he's not too pleased that his only daughter has recently joined the war effort instead of using her college education."_

_Hotch finished his drink and straightened his tie. "I'm going to ask her to dance. Should I?" He was quickly becoming insecure._

_Rossi chuckled, "You should. Stop being such a drill sergeant, pain in the ass."_

_Hotch gave him a rare smile before he stood up and slowly walked up to her table. He extended his hand to the beautiful woman with dark hair and dark eyes. "Would you care to dance with me, miss?"_

_The women beside her quietly giggled while she placed her hand in his. He smiled tenderly as he carefully pulled her to her feet and lead her onto the dance floor. He gentlemanly placed his free hand on the middle of her back and she placed hers on his shoulder._

_After a few moments of silence, she laughed softly, and it was almost musical. "So, are you going to tell me your name?"_

_He chuckled in embarrassment. He was very rusty at this kind of thing. "I apologize, miss. Aaron Hotchner."_

"_Emily Prentiss," she smiled._

"_You are a wonderful dancing partner, Miss Prentiss," he complimented._

"_Please call me Emily."_

"_Okay," he smiled, "then you'll call me Aaron."_

"_So, Aaron," she began with another breathtaking smile, "what do you think of the war?"_

"_Its tragic," he answered honestly._

"_So why are you a solider?" She questioned curiously. _

_Hotch gave her a surprised look. Seeing this, Emily started to speak again. "You see, I'm sick of being told what and what not to say by my parents. From here on out, I'm going to speak my mind and make my own decisions. That's why I decided to join the military effort as a nurse." She took in a breath. "So I wonder, then, why you are a soldier when you think so little of the war?"_

"_I'm a soldier so that those that are not can feel safe. That's why I do my job, so that others can have a better life."_

"_That's honest," she replied in surprise._

_He nodded, "Yes, well, it wouldn't be very respectful to lie."_

"_No, it would not," she agreed._

"_You have your own opinions on the war, don't you?"_

"_Of course, we all do, but only a few count for anything," she answered with a hint of bitterness in her voice._

"_Well, I'd love to hear yours," he stated genuinely. "You seem like a very intelligent woman."_

"_Okay, well, first of all," she began and he smiled widely._

_Meanwhile……_

_Reid stared in horror as a gorgeous blonde woman sauntered towards their table. He was just beginning to nervously fidget when he realized that Morgan knew her. "Hello again Miss Jareau," he beamed, "these are my friends, David Rossi and Dr. Reid."_

"_Pleasure to meet you, gentleman," she smiled as she took Hotch's vacant seat at their table. Morgan and Rossi started a conversation so she turned her attention to the youngest at the table. "I'm Jennifer, but my friends call me JJ."_

_Reid gently shook her hand. "Spencer."_

_JJ slowly leaned in towards him and began to speak quietly, "So my friend, the brunette," she discreetly pointed to the table that she had been previously sitting at, "thinks that you're handsome."_

"_Really?" He squeaked._

_She nodded. "Yeah, and now I get to go back and tell her that you're a doctor."_

_He smiled shyly as he asked, "Will you introduce me?"_

_JJ laughed playfully. "Sure." She grabbed his hand and pulled him up from the table._

_Morgan and Rossi both playfully chuckled as they watched Reid being dragged across the room. "Well, it's just you and me," Rossi chuckled as he saw that Hotch was still dancing with his lady friend._

"_I'm sorry," Morgan laughed, "but it's about to be just you." The band was still playing but the singer was taking a break. He decided that he would ask her to dance. He slowly got to his feet and saw that Rossi was laughing at him. He walked up to the stage where she was standing and flashed a broad smile._

"_How 'bout a dance?"_

_She smiled back at him and accepted his offer. He was gorgeous. "And you are?" She asked once they began to dance._

_He smiled, judging from her accent she was from the city but she wasn't from the east coast or his hometown of Chicago. "Lieutenant Derek Morgan. You?"_

"_Penelope Garcia, and since you know what I do, what do you do?" She asked bluntly._

"_I fly planes," he answered proudly._

"_Well I now feel that our skies are a little safer," she chuckled._

_He laughed along with her. "Thank you."_

"_I hear that the Royal Air Force is looking for volunteers from allies, is that true?"_

"_Yes ma'am," he replied truthfully._

"_Are you going to volunteer?" She asked curiously._

"_I'm not sure," he answered, once again being truly honest. He wasn't sure why he was revealing such personal things to this woman, but he didn't think twice about it._

"_Does the thought of volunteering scare you?" She inquired with a sly grin._

"_No," he laughed lightly. "I love to fly. I love the speed, the danger, I love serving this country, and we can certainly fly. But," he laughed again, "those Luftwaffe boys can fly too."_

"_Why did you enlist?" She asked with genuine interest. She knew that different men enlisted for different reasons, but she wanted to know why _this _man enlisted._

_He took a deep breath. "I enlisted because it was the only way that I could think of to help as many people as possible."_

"_I think I like you Derek Morgan," she smiled._

"_I think I like you too, Penelope Garcia," he smiled back._

"Hey Garcia! Are you still with us?" Prentiss asked laughing.

Garcia shook her head in an attempt to come back to the present. "Sorry," she laughed. "I was just daydreaming."

"About our past lives," Prentiss snickered quietly as she got up out of her chair.

"Oh shush, Ms. Scepticism!"

Prentiss laughed loudly but their light-hearted mood was interrupted by Hotch. "Everyone in the round table room," he called from the doorway of his office.

Prentiss groaned as her and Reid began to walk across the bullpen. Morgan waited for Garcia and stared at her with a puzzled expression on his face. "Something wrong, baby girl?"

"No," she smiled. "But I was just wondering," she paused for a moment, "why did you decided to have a career in law enforcement?"

"Umm," he laughed awkwardly as he scratched his scalp. "Well I decided to join Chicago PD because it was the only way that I could think of to help as many people as possible."

She smiled brightly. "That's what I thought."

"Why did you wanna ask me that?" He asked smiling; they were back to teasing and exchanging banter.

"I dunno," she shrugged. "I just thought about it."

"Okay," he laughed.

Garcia got up out of her seat and walked alongside of Morgan as they made their way to the conference room. "Hey, one more question." She spoke as she recalled her very detailed daydream.

"Sure," he laughed.

"Do you think that Hotch has a thing for Prentiss?" Morgan laughed loudly and she joined in as well.

**A/N: I hope that you all enjoyed. Review!! :)**


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